The instant invention relates to protective eyewear, and more particularly to a ballistic impact and/or splash resistant protective goggle construction.
Protective eyewear, and more particularly, safety goggles have heretofore been known in the art. However, prior art goggle designs have, in general, been found to be deficient in the following areas: providing a single size goggle body which conforms to both narrow and wide faces; providing adequate ventilation to prevent fogging of the lens while also providing resistance against the entry of liquid materials into the interior of the goggle; and providing a simple mechanism to releasably secure a lens to the goggle body. Prior art safety goggles have also been found to be uncomfortable to wear and poor fitting, thus increasing the likelihood that persons may not wear the goggles, and thus may not receive the impact and splash protection required.
The instant invention provides a goggle construction comprising a goggle body and a corresponding lens which is snap received over the front of the goggle body. The goggle body includes a rigid frame portion for maintaining the shape of the goggle body, and a resilient face engaging portion. The frame portion includes rigid top, bottom and side walls which cooperate to define a goggle interior. The resilient face engaging portion provides a comfortable engaging fit all around the face, and in particular includes convex bulges in the temple engaging areas to provide an engaging fit on both narrow and wide faces. The face engaging portion also provides a shaped nasal area designed to fit comfortably and securely on various shaped faces, e.g., different ethnic faces. The lens includes an optical, toric front wall, and further includes top, bottom and side walls which extend rearwardly from a peripheral edge of the front wall thereof. The lens further includes an upstanding ridge formed along the entire length of the rear peripheral edge of the top wall thereof to provide additional protection from high mass impacts and splashes. The rearwardly extending walls of the lens are slidably received over the goggle body frame walls to form an assembled goggle construction. The side walls of the frame and lens are provided with interengaging detent and clip structures to releasably secure the lens and frame portion in assembled relation. Ridge structures on the top and bottom walls of the frame portion cooperate with top and bottom lens walls to define indirect ventilation passages into the interior of the goggle for providing an air flow over the inner surface of the lens front wall. Since the rearwardly extending lens walls overly the goggle frame walls, splashed or spilled liquids are substantially prevented from entering into the goggle interior through the ventilation passages. A detent and notch arrangement is provided in the nose receiving area for maintaining the frame portion and lens in proper registry. Adjustable strap receiving members are provided on the side walls of the goggle body frame portion for adjustably receiving and securing a strap.
Accordingly, among the objects of the instant invention are: the provision of a safety goggle construction which is comfortable to wear and which will fit both narrow and wide faces; the provision of a safety goggle construction which has adequate air flow over the interior surface of the goggle lens to substantially reduce fogging thereof; the provision of a safety goggle construction which essentially prevents the entry of splashed or sprayed liquids into the interior of the goggle construction; and the provision of a safety goggle construction having a strap receiving member which is easily adjustable.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention shall become apparent as the description thereof proceeds when considered in connection with the accompanying illustrative drawings.